SIU director Joseph Martino said an assessment of the evidence found “no reasonable grounds” to believe any officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the woman’s death.聽
SIU director Joseph Martino said an assessment of the evidence found “no reasonable grounds” to believe any officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the woman’s death.聽
Ontario’s police watchdog has found Durham police officers not criminally responsible for the death of a 33-year-old woman who fell from a Whitby apartment balcony during a police visit in January.聽
According to a news release issued Monday by the Special Investigations Unit, Durham Regional Police were at the apartment on the morning of Jan. 8 to remove its occupants ahead of a search warrant execution scheduled for later that day.
Shortly after officers knocked on the door, the woman stepped onto the unit鈥檚 balcony and tried to climb down to the balcony below. She lost her grip and fell to the ground. Life-saving measures failed to save her and she was pronounced dead at the scene.
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW
Earlier that morning, according to an SIU news release from the day of the incident, Durham police had arrested a man in the area of as part of an investigation. After the arrest, officers went to an apartment building on nearby Waller Street, which runs parallel to Thickson. The building was 鈥渂elieved to have some connection with the man,鈥 according to SIU.聽
While officers were inside the apartment, the SIU said they 鈥渃ame to learn鈥 that a woman had fallen from the unit鈥檚 balcony.聽
SIU director Joseph Martino said an assessment of the evidence found “no reasonable grounds” to believe any officer committed a criminal offence in connection with the woman鈥檚 death.
The SIU is an independent civilian agency that investigates incidents involving police where there has been death, serious injury, sexual assault allegations or the discharge of a firearm at a person.
With files from Vanessa Tiberio
Joyce Li聽is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star鈥檚
radio room in Toronto.聽聽Reach her via e-mail
at聽joyceli@thestar.ca.
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